Competitor's Analysis & Identifying Business Potential

A PROJECT REPORT
ON
COMPETITOR S ANALYSIS AND IDENTIFYING BUSINESS POTENTIAL

FOR
ENSEMBLE CONSULTANTS
IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF
MASTER IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION UNIVERSITY OF PUNE
BY
SAURABH PARMAR M.B.A.

(2005 2007)
GUIDED BY Prof. SMITA SOVANI
VISHWAKARMA INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT, PUNE
CERTIFICATE
TO WHOM SO EVER IT MAY CONCERN
This is to certify that SAURABH PARMAR is a bonafide student of VISHWAKARMA INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT. He has successfully carried out his summer project titled COMPETITOR S ANALYSIS AND
IDENTIFYING BUSINESS POTENTIAL
at ENSEMBLE CONSULTANTS,
PUNE in the partial fulfillment of Master of Business Administration course of University of Pune. (2005 - 2007)
He has worked under our guidance and direction. His work is found to be good and complete in all respect. During the period we found him hardworking, sincere and loyal. We wish him all the best for future.
DR. SHARAD L. JOSHI SOVANI (DIRECTOR)
PROF. SMITA
(PROJECT GUIDE)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
To start with, I would like to mention this project has been a very good learning experience for me and was lucky that I was given an opportunity to work with Ensemble Consultants.
Firstly I would like to thank Mr. Deepak Bhalerao, President, Ensemble Consultants who approved my request regarding the summer project and allowed me to work with Ensemble Consultants. I am very obliged by the direct and indirect help extended to me by Mr.Bhalerao. I am also very thankful to Mr. Sushant Bhalerao, CEO, Ensemble Consultants who gave me his valuable time as well as his valuable tips regarding the project.
I would also like to thank Mr.Abhijit Honrao, Sr. SEO, Ensemble Consultants who approved my topic for the project and gave me initial guidelines which helped me in giving me a specific direction to my project work.
But when it comes to actual execution of the project work, it was Mr. Saket Shingewar, Marketing Executive and Mr.Sunil Khandelwal, Executive-Business Development, EcBuzz.com whose help and guidance throughout the period proved to be highly useful for the successful completion of this project. Without their day to day help and guidance, I wouldn t have been able to complete this project successfully to an extent I have been able to. I am certainly thankful to them for their unforgettable help and guidance.
I am extremely grateful to Prof. Smita Sovani of Vishwakarma Institute of Management of his wholehearted support and guidance at every stage of this project. I am very thankful to other faculty members and Dr. Sharad Joshi, Director, VIM for their guidance.
Contents
Sr. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Topic Executive Summary Topic & Objective Scope of Project Theoretical Background Company Profile Vision, Mission & Values Services & Products Research Methodology Data Analysis and Interpretation SWOT Analysis of Ensemble .. ..... . .. .. .
Page No. 1 3 5 6 9 13 16 32 35
10 11 12 13 14
56 60
Findings & Conclusion Limitation Recommendation Bibliography .. .
62 63 65
Exe c u t ive S u m m ary
EXECUTIVE SUMMERY
The project was carried out at Ensemble Consultants, Pune. The project title is Competitor s analysis and identifying business potential. The duration of project was of two months from 1st june 2006 to 1st august 2006. Due to limited resources only Pune market was selected for the study.
Technology has played an imperative role in business operations. The advent of internet has given a new methodology to conduct business faster; more accurate, cost effective, with-in limited time and space. Therefore the businesses and organizations in India are accepting Websites as a effective tool to perform business worldwide to unlimited audience and it is one of the best methods for globalizing business. So Ensemble web technologies were interested in finding out the potential business in Pune region and how the competitors are performing in this particular trade.
Competitor s analysis was carried out with the purpose of making comparative study of Ensemble Consultants and its major competitors in Pune region. Services and its prices offered by Ensemble Consultants are compared & analysed with respect to its competitors. A sample size of 10 competitors was selected for the analysis.
The competitors selected for the study were chosen as per the requirement of the company, as the management thought that these competitors could pose serious threat in future. Other basis on which the competitors were chosen are the number of years since these companies are in the business of web development, their brand recognition, their presence in the Pune market and due to aggressive advertising strategy adopted by some of the competitors.
In the study of identifying potential business, a sample size of hundred business units were selected for the analysis, which were categorized into three categories as large scale(30), medium scale(40) and small scale(30) based on the size of the business and its location.
Research methodology adopted for the collection of primary data was interpersonal interview and telephonic interview. The secondary data sources were Ensemble Consultants Website, Ensemble brochure and manuals, other websites etc. Observations regarding the preferences of respondents and competitors and insights from discussion with them are also included in the report.
The facts and figures itself talk about the competitors performance, market structure and potential market for wed development services in Pune.
To pic an d Obje c t iv e
TOPIC
The basic subject that is chosen for this project is competitor s analysis and identification of business potential for ensemble consultants. In order to cover this subject with taking into consideration various aspects related to the Web
Development Business, the whole subject is divided into suitable topics which are as follows :-
Major Topic : Competitor s Analysis ( To make a comparative study of services and prices of Ensemble Consultants and it s competitors ).
Sub Topic :
Identifying business potential ( To identify the segment of the market which can provide potential business to the company).
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OBJECTIVE
The objectives behind carrying out this project are as follows : -
To make comparative analysis of services offered by Ensemble Consultants, their prices with respect to its competitors.
To identify the major player in the web development industry.
To study the prevailing trends in highly competitive pune market.
To make SWOT Analysis of Ensemble Consultants.
To do the promotional activities, direct marketing and selling of the services & products of Ensemble Consultants.
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S c o pe o f Pro je c t
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SCOPE
The project was limited to Pune market only. The survey for competitor s analysis was limited to ten companies. The selection of these competitors was done according to the requirement of Ensemble Consultants. The comparative analysis of competitors covered in the study was done on the basis of ten services only.
Domain Names (.com, .net, .org ). Domain Names (.in). Webpage Designing (Static). Webpage Designing (Dynamic). Web Hosting. MyCart Software. E-mail Solutions. Web Maintenance. Content Development. Online selling.
The survey for potential business identification was limitation to 100 business units surveyed from different parts of Pune.
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Th e o re t ic al Bac k gro u n d
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BUSINESS AND WEBSITES
Technology has played an imperative role in business operations. The advent of internet has given a new methodology to conduct business faster; more accurate, cost effective, with-in limited time and space. Internet is wrapped up with thousands of interconnected networks connected worldwide. The deployment of Internet in business has given rise to perform business worldwide to unlimited audience and it is one of the best methods for globalizing business. Website is a powerful tool for winning business strategy that assists companies to compete with their competitors and to improve customer satisfaction and hence Web site development model has been formulated to assist companies to perform business functions efficiently.
Web site development for business is simply not designing websites to promote the products it has its unique process to automate any business. Websites helps manufacturers to understand the customer s wants and needs by understanding their behavior when they visit company websites or research any relevant information and this in-turn helps manufacturers and marketers to produce customize and personalize product. Internet business has changed the marketing practices of company to the great extent today marketers need to be more and more creative to reach and convince their audience to buy products.
Today many companies have also set up extranets with their suppliers to facilitate information exchange, transactions and payments. Internet business has given birth to e-commerce which is more and more specific when compared to internet business or e-business. The term e-commerce encourages companies to sell their products or services through internet. To be more precise about internet business; it is simply performing business using internet for worldwide audience in order to globalize business.
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In today s competitive scenario most Organization needs website to run its business and operations. Many businesses had grown by leaps and bounds when facilitated by a web site. The various facets of service and business models affected most by web sites are
Professional/Specialized Services: This includes Professional services such as accountants, consultants, architects etc. The use of technology has encouraged service business to devise innovative strategies to support the very nature of the business. Service industry advertise its services electronically that is through internet and since internet business model reaches global audience by breaking the geographic barriers and hence today service sectors enjoy massive profit and growth since internet has out-performed the traditional advertising and it directly reaches its prospective audience.
Information business: This section includes those who gather, create and sell knowledge. Internet has given a new room for this kind of business. Today people use internet for many reasons and information search through internet ranks top. Many enterpreneur today adopted this business methodology and has created a success because there is lot of scope for business in this digital era and information business is one such businesses which grows with a full pace.
E-Advertising: Electronic advertising, the business model which grows constantly and is expected to out-perform the traditional advertising methods. From this business model companies can simply sell advertising space on the web which in turn generates a mutual understanding to both the parties (advertisers and publishers). Advertisers get revenue by posting advertisement in their website and publishers gets traffic to his website and/or brand awareness of his (publishers) product through advertisement. This is really a big business and one can monetize his/her website (if available) by just selling the website space.
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Internet Careers: Many people have started making careers in internet itself. This business model includes graphic artist, web designers and developers, software programmers, computer and software trainers through online, Internet marketing professionals etc. This is considered as fastest growing business and many people have been the part of web development industry.
Electronic Publishing: Today people can find free news, magazines, and newsletters in the digital format. In this business model any factual written material can be published in digital format and uploaded in the website. Online or Electronic publishing is exploding since its too cost effective when compared to the printed version of newspapers, magazines, newsletters etc. There are many innovative ways that a company can generate revenue from this business model.
Thus Web site has become the right source and a powerful tool for the businesses to create a new and innovative business strategy in order to sustain in the market.
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Co m pan y Pro file
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Ensemble Consultants web technologies connect thousands of people around the world to information & products every day. Founded in 2004, Ensemble Consultants and its website properties are global market leaders in e commerce storefront service space. Ensemble Consultants is headquartered in Pune, India with strategic partners in more than 23 countries around the world. Ensemble Consultants offers software driven consulting services and solutions. Ensemble Consultants specialize in Creative design, Media planning, Offshore support services, Engineering design, Software development solutions and Electronic commerce (ecommerce) management. Ensemble follow world-class quality certification standards to provide our customers with competency driven professional services. It s business model is designed to provide their customers with a competitive edge in the global market and add value at every stage of outsourcing. The Ensemble Consultants' Team has, over the past three years, built just the kind of experience required for the strategic design and faultless operation of websites and other online activity. Their team includes people with backgrounds in all the areas relevant to this business : Strategic design and communication with corporate strategy. to align online content and communication
Knowledge architecture and planning for a clear understanding of information flows, the way in which people seek information, and the software and design needed to provide it in a user-friendly way. Domain knowledge of a wide range of industries, and familiarity with technology as well as management issues. Writing and editing skills required to develop and maintain world-class websites and other corporate communication activity. Design for media and business our designers understand the requirements of a business site and have the know-how to create visually appealing corporate, product and information sites. Software development our expertise covers the gamut of web-related software.
Our Business Units 1. 2. 3. 4. ECSnap.com ECBuzz.com iceads.com EC Business Service (Development Center)
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A Brief Overview of Our Business Units
ECSnap.com is a International, full-service WebSite development and consulting service dedicated to small business. It give their customers a clear path to building WebSites tailored to meet their online objectives. ECSnap s Design Center is staffed with experienced Web designers, copywriters, and graphic designers who are ready to build WebSites that meet the needs of any kind of business.
ECSnap have built many WebSites for all types of small companies. From starter sites to powerful e-commerce stores to the services that grow companies on the Internet, EnsembleConsultants is the leader in Web development solutions for small business.
They partner their customers to build an online business, and offer many Web services to enhance their sites. These include Services to drive traffic to their site Services that help small businesses build relationships with their customers and suppliers
E-commerce services that enable small businesses to sell products and services online Add-on products to enhance Web site functionality. ECSnap.com has provided e-commerce services to over 2000 clients in 2005 - 06. ECSnap operates through its office in Savoy, U.S.A.
Office Adress: ECSnap.com 212 E Tomaras Avenue, Savoy, IL 61874, USA
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ECBuzz.com is a one stop ecommerce service provider. Primarily focused on the Indian market, ECBuzz.com deploys a brick and click distribution & marketing strategy. Currently they distribute a variety of ecommerce & web hosting related products & services in Pune, India through two company retail outlets.
ECBuzz.com is a national, full-service Web site development and consulting service dedicated to small business. They give their customers a clear path to building Web sites tailored to meet their online objectives. ECBuzz s Design Center is staffed with experienced Web designers, copywriters, and graphic designers who are ready to build Web sites that meet the needs of small business.
ECBuzz have built many Web sites for all types of small & medium companies. From starter sites to powerful e-commerce stores to the services that grow companies on the Internet, Ensemble Consultants is the leader in Web development solutions for small business. They partner with our customers to build an online business, and we offer many Web services to enhance their sites.
Services to drive traffic to their site. Services that help small businesses build relationships with their customers and suppliers E-commerce services that enable small businesses to sell products and services online. Add-on products to enhance Web site functionality.
In the current economic environment, companies, organizations and institutions alike are seeking ways to reduce costs, and add value to their marketing and communications strategies. Our professional Website Maintenance service deliverers just that. Office Adress : ECBuzz.com C- 201 Pune IT Park, 34, Aund Road, Bhau Patil Marg PUNE - 20
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Iceads.com is a digital signage company. The company Provides digital signage software solutions that schedule & broadcast your dynamic content and assets to your chosen audience, allowing multiple combinations of what you deliver, to where and to whom.
Supplies scheduling & broadcasting software components, which augment your existing portfolio of services (e.g. content creation, network monitoring) to expand your market. Offers scheduling & broadcasting solutions, which enhance your current offer and pull through incremental product sales.
Recommends a defined range of display products and support services (i.e. large format; high brightness;easy access for maintenance) not usually offered from general distribution sources. Combines our experience in both scheduling & broadcasting and display technology to offer you a differentiated one-stop solution.
Ensemble Consultants Business Services are a global business-consulting firm like no other. The company help clients solve their toughest problems, their biggest challenges, the hurdles that require the unique capabilities of our team of top-caliber professionals - business experts, strategists, specialists and researchers.
At Ensemble Consultants Business Services, our expertise ranges across key business issues and deep into 3 industries in India & USA. Their industry / business experience is real. And so are the results we bring to our clients. The company have helped them unlock value in areas such as sales, marketing, business strategy & strategic innovation. We've shown them new ways to transform their business, their thinking and their bottom line.
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Vis io n , Mis s io n & Valu e s
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Ensemble Consultants
Our Vision "Ensemble Consultants strives to achieve customer satisfaction by designing and executing break through brand development and promotion strategies for continuous growth" .
Our Mission At Ensemble Consultants, we work to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential. This is our mission. Everything we do reflects this mission and the values that make it possible.
Our Values As a company, and as individuals, we value: Integrity and honesty. Passion for customers, for our partners, and for technology. Openness and respectfulness. Taking on big challenges and seeing them through. Constructive self-criticism, self-improvement, and personal excellence. Accountability to customers, shareholders, partners, and employees. .
Innovation At EnsembleConsultants, we see a future full of potential. We're working to expand the possibilities for computing every day, by continually improving and advancing our current products and embarking on fundamental research that paves the way for tomorrow's breakthroughs. Through partnerships with other companies,
EnsembleConsultants is working to push the state of the art forward in ways that benefit everyone.
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Technology Ensemble Consultants mission Creating Products for Intelligent selling. Ensemble Consultants is an engineering company. Our products are powered by some amazing technology, most of it developed in-house.
The Story So Far The mathematics of selling is tough, but we've made significant progress. Besides constructing one of the world's widely used shopping cart systems (over 2500 clients in one year) we have achieved significant progress in the last one year of operations.
1) Developed an in-house online auctions system 2) Developed in-house a suite of web services which are widely in use 3) Developed in-house an image processing algorithm for robotic research 4) Developed a patent pending, real time queing model for real world problems 5) Developed an algorithm for dynamically pricing inventory on real world factors 6) Developed in-house technology & process for turnkey digital signage systems 7) Developed in-house media playback software 8) Developed in-house software for media scheduling 9) Developed in-house software for media hosting & file management 10) Developed in-house shopping comparison search engine
All this is achieved by connecting together thousands of servers and providing them with a lot of custom-built, cutting-edge, innovative software.
We are building a system & a method that will change the way people conduct business. It will attach a fundamental concept of tieing up marketing expenses with sales, directly, as a variable cost. All this is done by a dedicated and growing team of smart, creative programmers and computer scientists and artists -- but we just call them Consultants.
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Our Franchisees
Inorder to expand its business horizon, Ensemble Consultants has successfully launched 2 franchised stores in Pune . The response has been encouraging, especially for our hosting business. We have learned much about doing busniess in Pune region and have changed business processes and plans to best suit our customers. Our third franchised mortar store is scheduled to be launch in Bangalore . We are setting reasonable targets for the stores and hoping to add more products to the business line. Over the last three months or so, we have managed to secure more than 100 customers just from Pune. Our Franchised stores are :
Network 1053, Manasikrupa, 'C', Flat no. 1, Dhotre Road, Opp Jain Boarding, Model Colony, Pune 411016. Tel.: 020 - 25661606.
Shree Swami Samarth Consultancy Office No. 202, Plot no. 5/1, DSK Classique, Erandwana, Karve Road, Pune- 411 004 Tel: 020 - 25466986
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S e rv ic e s & Pro du c t s
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SERVICES
In the current economic environment, companies, organizations and institutions alike are seeking ways to reduce costs, and add value to their marketing and communications strategies. Ensemble Consultants professional Website
development, Internet solutions and E-commerce services deliverers just that. The company give their customers a clear path to building web sites tailored to meet their online objectives.
Ensemble Consultants design Centre is staffed with experienced web designers, copywriters and graphic designers who are ready to build website that meet the needs of our customers. They provide a reliable platform for online business services so that you can avoid costly investments in hardware, software and IT staffing.
Ensemble s systems are monitored around the clock and they devote significant resources to maintaining highly reliable facilities. These measures allow them to support your growing business and to help you deliver a superior customer experience. EnsembleConsultants offers a reliable and comprehensive range of Web development and E-commerce services, some of them stated below
WebSite Design Services. Domain Names. Web Hosting. MyCart Software. Payment Gateway. E-mail Solutions. Web Maintenance. Content Development. Search Engine Optimization. Site Statics. Customer Support. Online selling.
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WebSite Design Services

Web Design is the art and process of creating a single Web page or entire Web sites and may involve both the aesthetics and the mechanics of a Web site's operation although primarily it focuses on the look and feel of the Web site - the design elements. . Web design is a form of electronic publishing.
Your web site is often your first contact with customers, so it s important that the creative elements you use reflect your business goals and objectives. Choosing the right colors, fonts, and graphics for your web site will help you establish your company s online presence and attract more visitors.
Ensemble Consultants offer over 250 designs categorized into 20 types: Corpotare Business, IT & Software, Home & Furnishings, Travel & Tourism, Shopping & Communication etc. Select a design that suits your taste. Your selection will be used as the foundation for the design of your new website. Once the production team contacts you, you may demand additional design and layout modification to the Pre-selected template.
Ensemble Consultants is equipped with a team of excellent & well skilled developers, copy-writers and graphic designers who are technically sound and having a highly qualified skill set. Our web developers are capable of identifying customer s business needs and developing a interactive, user friendly, informative and professional web site that suits customer requirements.
Knowing some basic design rules can help you create a great site.
Getting Started First of all identify your requirements and determine the objective that you want to achieve through your website.
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Using a Template To keep your site attractive but simple, it may be helpful to begin with a template. These templates are often professionally designed and customizable for your business. While most of the work is done for you when you use a template, you ll still have the opportunity to customize your site and make some key creative decisions
Color Typically, it s best to stick with three colors and to choose a neutral, solid background color like white. Two of the most popular color combinations are red, yellow, and white and blue, orange, and white. You can adjust the shades and depths of your colors to make some sections of the site stand out more than others. Using more than three colors can make your site look less cohesive especially when you factor in all of the colors in the images you ll be incorporating.
Fonts The fonts on your site can influence your readers perception of your company. For example, a serif font like Times New Roman is more formal than the sans serif font Arial. Select fonts that are easy to read (sans serif fonts tend to be easier to read online) and are readable on any browser (Explorer, Netscape, etc.) or operating system (PC or Mac).
Graphics Resist the temptation to use lots of pictures and graphics because it can make your site slow to load and drive away impatient users. And designers agree that one strong image on your home page often is far more powerful than multiple smaller ones.
Good Creative Pays Off Once you have established a color palette and selected your fonts and graphics, see if they work well together to convey your company s image. Try a variety of font-color-graphic combinations, and have fun designing your site.
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Choosing the right creative elements
colors, fonts, and images allows you to
be creative while building a professional-looking site that will enhance your online presence, appeal to customers, and help you meet your business objectives.
MyCart Software
Do you already have a Web site that you are happy with? Do you have a small number of items that you are selling? If so, you can consider adding a shopping cart application such as MyCart. A shopping cart enables your existing Web site to take orders, and sends those order application for processing.
Shopping cart software can either be licensed outright, or rented by the month as a hosted application. When it is licensed, you pay a one-time fee you will be able to download the software from the Internet. You will then be responsible for making updates & maintaining the software. When shopping cart software is rented by the month, it is installed, hosted, and maintained by ECBuzz on their Web server. You will pay a monthly fee to use the software. To update product information, you simply log-on to their service and save your changes.
My Cart Economy : Rs.450/month My Cart Economy offers a full featured shopping cart with access to all the important features that are required to start selling upto 20 goods and services on the internet. The service is focused on the needs of the small and medium scale businesses where the clear priority is getting sales.
My Cart Premium : Rs.1000/month My Cart Premium is a complete online store solution that contain both a catalog front-end and a administration tool back-end,which can be easily maintained and used by the store owner. Hundereds of powerful features make this a very stable & scalable software option. Host unlimited products with my Cart premium.
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Web Hosting
The World Wide web is a massive collection of web sites, all hosted on computers (called web Servers) all over the world. The web Server (computer) where your web sites, html files, graphics etc resides is known as Web Host. Web Hosting clients simply upload their web sites to a shared (or dedicated) web server, which maintains to ensure a constant, fast connection to the internet.
Web hosting is a service that provides Internet users with online systems for storing information, images, video, or any content accessible via the web. Web hosts are companies that provide space on a server they own for use by their clients as well as providing Internet connectivity, typically in a data center. Web hosts can also provide data center space and connectivity to the Internet for servers they do not own to be located in their data center.
Choose a Web Hosting Provider Once your web site is designed and you re ready to take your site live, you ll need to find a place to host it so people can see it. There are three ways to get your site from your desktop to the Internet : Installing a web server and connecting it to the Internet. (This method can be pricey and complicated.) Setting up your pages on your Internet service provider s space. (Cheaper, but lacking some of the services a business site needs.) Setting up your pages using a web hosting provider. Of these options, most medium & small business owners find using a web hosting provider is the easiest and most cost-effective. A web host also provides a lot more storage space than you can usually manage on your own.
Ensemble s powerful web hosting plans are offering a huge disk space, 99.9% server uptime guarantee. You can administer your web space, e-mail account, directories, cgi-bin and all the special features.
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There are a number of options to look for when choosing a Web host. Ask about the following to ensure you find a provider that will meet your needs.
Cost : Most web hosting providers charge both a start-up fee and a yearly service fee. Yearly fees range into the thousands of rupees, but most businesses can get the space they need for between Rs. 450/- and Rs. 7,000/- a year. (ECBuzz Web Hosting : 100 MB@ Rs. 500/year)
Contracts : Some hosts require one-year agreements (paid up front) while others offer month-to-month service, allowing you to cancel anytime. Find out what your contract options are, and ask about guarantees in writing. Most providers will allow you to try the service risk-free for 30 days.
Disk Space : Make sure that you have enough disk space to accommodate your current web site content as well as the expansions you expect down the road. Most sites use less than 5MB of web space, but depending on your use of pictures, graphics, Flash, or multimedia files, you might need more. Ask how much space is included and how much extra space will cost should you need it. ( ECBuzz Space : 100 MB - 15GB )
Bandwidth : Bandwidth refers to the number of bytes transferred from your site to visitors when they browse your site. The higher the bandwidth, the faster your pages will load, making the browsing experience better for your visitors. Be sure that the host you choose specifies exactly how much traffic it will allow. Most new sites require less than 3GB of bandwidth per month. ( ECBuzz Bandwidth: 1GB - 300GB )
Domain Names : Your web hosting service may offer you free registration for your domain name. If you need more than one domain name page and one used to promote specific products, for example an extra fee. one for your home ask if there will be
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Email Address : Most hosts offer at least one email address associated with your site. Make sure you can get several email accounts to accommodate your current and future employees as well as addresses that are dedicated to support and information. For example : info@yourcompany.com or support@yourcompany.com.
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) : FTP allows you to transfer files to and from your web site and is a necessity for most sites and it's included by most host
companies. If you are selling software or other downloadable goods, you may need an anonymous FTP site so that users can access and download files.
Security : If you plan to take online orders or transmit personal information (such as credit card numbers), you ll need a secure server (often called an SSL server). There may be an additional fee for secure service, but it will pay off in the long run because many customers won t make a purchase or submit their information from an unsecured site.
Passwords : If you need password protected pages (account logins, for example) be sure the host offers this service.
Activity Reports : Activity or access reports provide you with information about the people who visit your site. These reports can include information about which pages were viewed the most, how long users viewed each page, and how users found your site. Find out exactly what information will be provided and how often you ll receive updated reports.
Finding the right host for your site is like finding a new place to live. You want to have all of the basic amenities, plus a few extra perks to make it a little nicer. Choose an experienced provider you feel comfortable working with, one that address all of your site s needs, and you ll have the right home for your site in no time. And Ensemble gives you the best deal.
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Domain Names
Domain name is the unique name that identifies an Internet site. A domain name is the text name corresponding to the numeric IP address of a computer on the Internet. A domain name must be unique. Internet users access your website using your domain name. For example ensembleconsultants.com is the domain name of our web site. The suffix added after the dot is called extension as usually denotes the type of the organization. .com commercial .edu educational institute .org orgaization etc The generally added prefix, www is the particular host server name . There is an organization called InterNIC that registers domain names for a small fee and keeps people from registering the same name. Most recently, more domain names will be allowed due to new suffixes coming out.
E-mail Solutions
ECBuzz.com e-mail account is fast, ultra-reliable & secure. It s POP3 configured & advertising-free. It allows unique you@yourdomain.com personalization. It allows you to send & receive e-mail using popular e-mail clients like Microsoft outlook etc.The other important features provided along with e-mail solutions to enhance your online business functions are Spam Filtering : This smart technology identifies spam before it can become a nuisance. And you can train it to learn & defeat new spam techniques as you go. Virus Protection : Keeps your computer safe from the malicious viruses that lurk in innocent looking e-mails.
Unlimited e-mail accounts : Most hosts offer at least one email address associated with your site. Ensemble offers you several email accounts to accommodate your current and future employees as well as addresses that are dedicated to support and information.
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Web Maintenance
The reasons why an organization needs the Web Maintenance sevice are : Untraceable time spent by the employees "working" on your organizations website and the costs and lost time involved . Website content out of date both for your product and for search engine optomization . Inexperience in maintaining a clean and fresh looking website . Your time is best spent on doing what you do best, running your business. Our business is helping you to free up your own time to do just that. Our web site maintenance services are flexible and affordable. Once your site is online, it will inevitably need to be updated to keep your content fresh. Our Web Maintenance and Management service protect your site and investment in your web presence by constant site-optimization. In addition, we continually meet the needs of your web site, both immediate and long term both technically and content wise.
Website Maintenance involves : Keeping your website up-to-date : Content editing can be accomplished with updated information, such as special offers, product changes, pricing changes, new product and services announcements, employee information changes and all those things that keep your visitors properly informed. Maintaining & managing your site : Using latest technologies, we can monitor your site and make changes that improve your site performance for faster download and improved content spread. We insure that new innovative features are implemented from time to time. Secure & Protect your site : Server side programming used for form processing, database management, search and display functions, shopping carts etc require regular updation to implement fixes for security holes discovered from time to time. We can manage ASP, PHP and Perl codes for all sorts of applications.
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Re-structure your site contents : Using your site access statistics like how many visitors your site has, and what they look at while visiting, we can help you restructure your site contents and navigation elements for increased business. Most maintenance job include at least the following: Modification and Addition of Website Content Image Manipulation and Addition (client supplied images) Newsletter & email list maintenance Shopping cart product updates Update announcements, articles, etc. Replace images i.e. pictures & graphics Adding/removing pages PDF creation and uploading .
CRM and Webmaster Outsourcing Service : Webmaster outsourcing services including live customer help, support services and handling and answering customer queries and more.
Content Development
A web site is generally assessed by the quality of its content. A professional web site in particular should have rich, interesting and relevant content.
Ensemble Consultants is equipped with a team of excellent & well skilled copywriters and graphic designers who are technically sound and having a highly qualified skill set.
If you don't have web content? Don't worry about as. We have excellent copywriters on staff to write excellent copy for your website. Get the content of your web site written & edited by professionals. 20 pages of content development & original artwork only at Rs. 3000.
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Online Selling
For the easiest way to expand your potential customer base, sell your products online. Online shopping feature have now enabled small businesses on a budget and with limited technical expertise to sell alongside the big guys with the deep pockets. There are two ways to establish an online store :
Template-based stores. Custom designed stores.
Template-based stores : This is the most inexpensive way to start selling online. However, because these stores must work for the masses, they have a plain design and are limited in functionality. Typically they also have far more restrictions on what you can do with your site - like preventing you from linking to another site that sells your products. These prepackaged online store setups are ideal if your business has very straightforward retail needs. Also, if you are not sure whether selling online will be effective, you can test the waters more easily with template stores since they require no long-term commitment. Should your store not prove feasible, you are only out the monthly fees, not a custom-designed storefront.
Custom designed stores : Custom development allows a lot more flexibility in setup and design. They also support more sophisticated functions like integrating a store into your existing Web site, creating a look and feel that is markedly different from your competitors, offering extensive reporting, or working in tandem with online auctions. You are better off hiring an e-commerce development firm that specializes in shopping cart software to do this for you. But remember that while anyone can be an online retailer, not everyone can be successful at it. Whatever type of online store you choose, remember that the Internet does not operate in an "if you build it, they will come" mentality. Unless you have marketing and advertising plans to clearly target your customers, adding online shopping to your site will be a waste of time and money.
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Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Search Engine Optimization is the process of increasing the amount of visitors to a Web site by ranking high in the search results of a search engine. The higher a Web site ranks in the results of a search, the greater the chance that site will be visited by a user. It is common practice for Internet users to not click through pages and pages of search results, so where a site ranks in a search is essential for directing more traffic toward the site. Search Engine Optimization is the process of choosing targeted keyword phrases related to a site, and ensuring that the site places well when those keyword phrases are part of a Web search.
Search Engine Optimization ensures that your web pages are accessible to search engines and focused in ways that help improve the chances they will be found. Search engines are one of the primary ways that Internet users find web sites. That's why a web site with a good search engine listing may see a dramatic increase in traffic. Everyone wants that good listing. A number of factors are important when optimizing a web site, including the content and structure of the web site's copy and page layout, the HTML meta-tags and the submission process. Search Engine Optimization service involves Search Engine Consultation : With WebSites search engine optimization services, we offer our clients honest answers, informational feedback and efficient project management. Our phased approach ensures timely client communication and realistic expectations.
PPC Bid Management : Managing a PPC campaign is no easy task. Our PPC bid management services will help you earn more and spend less. Our ad specialist will optimize your ads by researching the best keywords to use, in turn maximizing traffic and increasing conversions. Don't let another day go by with your competitors out-ranking you.
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Link advertising programs are dedicated to improving your web site's visibility among targeted, complimentary web properties. Using our proven strategies, we help boost your web site promotion efforts by adding text rich links to a network of highly regarded (by the search engines) web sites. Do not confuse this service with a link farm program.
Search Engines & Directories We Target : OneSoluion focuses only on the major players in the search engine industry for all of our services.
Our Services Include : Initial competitive analysis report. Optimization of titles & meta tags. Working on the HTML source code. Hand submission to search engines & directories. Link development / exchange. Dedicated account manager. Paid inclusion to search engines. Log file analysis. Pay Per Click Consulting. Monthly reports. Link Advertising.
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PRODUCTS
Design Studio
The Design Studio is wholly developed by Ensemble Consultants to help the small and medium businesses for their various marketing and promotional solutions. Design studio not only assist you in your day to day business activities but it also provides a uniqueness and value addition to your business functions. The Design Studio Consist of 5 CD s, they are 1. Design it yourself Website Templates. 2. Power Point Presentation Templates. 3. Print Media Solutions. 4. Flash Templates. 5. Mp3 Music and Sound Library.
Brief about the CD s are as follows Design it yourself Website Templates: This fast, easy-to-use software lets you build your website and take it live on the Internet in a few quick steps. This CD has a collection of 470 templates and 2500 rich images, which helps to make a web page in 10 minutes. These templates are compatible with any Office suit and have to be used in word. The linking of web page is easily possible with hyperlink function. The advance user can use frontpage editor, html editor to make the website. These website are compatible with shopping cart and other online software. Best of all, we've made it very affordable for you to create your website and get it live.
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Power Point Presentation Templates : This CD has been built for PowerPoint; provide a great design for your next presentation! Many of our presentation templates provide additional graphic decks that help you better communicate your message. You will also find many of the templates include graphic elements to give your presentation that extra excitement. Simply add your message to the pre-designed template and you're ready to go. Browse through our extensive collection of presentation templates for PowerPoint today! Offers a comprehensive collection of digital vector and raster clip art. Available formats include PowerPoint (WMF), EPS, JPEG, Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop. All images are easy to customize and edit. Our clip arts are ready to use for business and marketing presentations or reports
Print Media Solutions Leading the way in the PC print media market, ECBuzz recently launched this new range of creative print media. The range comprises a complete assortment of PC print media and different design solutions for News, creative, home, hobby and many more category. Print Media Solution helps to design in house attractive and dynamic news letters, letterheads, visiting card, brochure, flyers, product catalog, product booklet, small and medium size posters and lots of creative paper marketing.
Flash Templates Our flash templates feature a collection of high end, multimedia, and fully customizable flash templates. All our flash templates are fully working templates with enabled buttons, links and action scripts, not just nice-looking graphic designs. Entrepreneurs and business worldwide have taken advantage of our cost saving, fast turnaround, one-stop solutions to achieve goals easier and faster. We empower you with our professional design skills and programming expertise, so you can focus on your business and core competencies. Our Turnkey Web Design Company package enables anyone to start a web design company within days, and having us work as your own team of developers.
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Mp3 Music and Sound Library This CD is a collection of MP3 mixed bag sound clips of special sound effects for your presentation. This collection of almost 90 effects, which can even be used with flash images to make the dynamic presentation.
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Re s e arc h Me t h o do lo gy
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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Introduction
Research is an art of scientific investigation through search of new facts in any branch of knowledge. It is movement from unknown to known. The study of research methodology gives the student the necessary training in gathering materials required, and also training in technique for the collection of data appropriate to particular problem. It helps in the use of statistics, questionnaire and controlled experimentation and in recording evidences, sorting it out and interpreting it. Knowledge of research methodology is helpful in various fields. Research methodology plays key role in project work. It consists of series of actions or steps necessary to effectively carry out research and the desired sequencing of these step.
Basic features of a research process are : Research always start with a question or a problem. It s purpose is to find answers to questions through the application of scientific methode. It is a systematic and intensive study directed towards a more complete knowledge of the subject studied.
Methods Of Data Collection

Data collection is an elaborate process in which the researcher makes a planned search for all relevant data and is the foundation of all marketing research. It is the raw material with which a marketer researcher functions. The task of data collection begins after a research problem has been defined and research plan is chalked out. While deciding about the method of data collection to be used for the study the researcher should keep in mind two types of data viz., primary data and secondary data.
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Sources Of Data
A. Secondary data Secondary data is the data already collected by others for purposes other than solution of the problem at hand. In case of Secondary data the nature of data collection work is merely that of compilation. Secondary data has several supplementary uses.
1. Internal sources Company records. Service reports. Yellow pages. 2. External sources Web pages of organizations and journals. Magazines. Newspapers. B. Primary data The data that is being collected for the first time or to particularly fulfill the objectives of the project is known as primary data. The data can be classifies as primary data, which is gathered for the first time by the researcher and thus happen to be original in character. Interpersonal interview method and telephonic interview method were used to collect the primary data.
Sampling
Sample is small group taken under consideration from total customer population. This small group represents the total population. In the project I studied market in Pune city. As it was impossible to approach all respondents of city, a sample was selected which represent whole city.
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As my research work can be divided into two parts, therefore separate sampling was done for each of the category. Competitors Analysis : A sample size of ten competitors was selected for the analysis. The competitors selected for the study were chosen with the consent of the company, as the management thought that these competitors could pose serious threat in the future. Identifying potential business : A sample size of hundred business units were selected for the analysis, which were categorized into three categories as large scale(30), medium scale(40) and small scale(30) based on the size of the business and its location. The area covered was Parvati Industrial estate, M.G road, camp area, F.C road, market yard etc.
Data Evaluation
All the data collected was filtered & only relevant data is introduced in the report which helped in achieving objective of the project. This relevant data is finally analyzed and evaluated to make the final report and to deduce final conclusion
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Dat a An aly s is an d In t e rpre t at io n
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DATA ANALYSIS
Competitors Analysis
This data analysis is done mainly with the purpose of making comparative study of Ensemble Consultants and its major competitors. The competitors selected for the study were chosen with the consent of the company, as the management thought that these competitors could pose serious threat in the future. Other basis on which the competitors were chosen are the number of years since these companies are in the business of web development, their brand recognition, their presence in the Pune market and due to aggressive advertising strategy adopted by some of the competitors.
The attributes on the basis on which the analysis is done are the services which are commonly provided by any web development company. Therefore a comparative study of the various services provided by the companies is done. Also the prices at which these services are provided to the customers by the companies are compared so that we get a better picture of what services are provided by which company and at what prices.
So now, let us turn our attention to the analysis which is done separately for each of the service considered for the study.
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Graph 1 : Domain Name ( .com, .net, .co.in, .org )

Domain Name (.com,.org,.net,.co.in)
1600
Price(Rs)/Year
1500
1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0

Companies
399 500 750 600 399 399 1000 950 750 500
Ensemble Consultant Mascot Solutions Sunmax systems pvt.ltd. GenX infotech
Numeron systems Pyw ay w eb solutions Deccan Code Merven Technologies
Genesis Designs Hostin Services pvt. Ltd. Deore Consultancy Services
Important Points :
As far as Domain name is concerned ; Ensemble Consultants, Hostin services and Deccan code are giving the service at same price i.e. Rs 399 per year. Hostin services is providing Domain name at the same price since a long time but Deccan code has recently chop down its price.
Since Ensemble Consultant is following penetration pricing strategy so they have kept the prices similar to the nearest rival i.e. Hostin services pvt. Ltd.
Among other companies Mascot solution and Merven Technologies providing the Domain Name at a bit higher price of Rs 500 per year. Rest of the companies offering the service at premium price mainly because they acquire domain names through other companies.
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Graph 2 : Domain Name ( .in )

Domain Name (.in)
3500 3000
2500
Price(Rs)/year
2500 2000
1500 1500 1000 1000 900 1200 699 1000
1500 1000 500 0

799
699
Companies
Ensemble Consultant Mascot Solutions Sunmax systems pvt.ltd. GenX infotech Numeron systems Pyw ay w eb solutions Deccan Code Merven Technologies Genesis Designs Hostin Services pvt. Ltd. Deore Consultancy Services
Important Points :
Hostin services and Deccan Code are providing the .in domain name at the cheapest rate of Rs 699 per year.
Ensemble is offering the .in domain name at a slight higher rate of Rs 799 per year.
Other companies are offering this domain name at relatively higher price.
Ensemble is offering the domain name at economic price because one of its business unit, ECSnap is operating in united states. And due to its tie up with a US base server, Ensemble acquires the domain name authorization at lower rates.
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Graph 3 : Web Hosting Space
8000 7000 Price(Rs)/year 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0

6500
100MB Hosting Space

7000 5500 4500 3000 2000 2500 700 500 1000
5000
Companies
Important Points :
As far as Web Hosting is concerned, the price at which Ensemble offers 100 MB Hosting space is lowest in whole Asia.
Price of Hostin services pvt. Ltd. is slightly higher.
Rest of the companies charge way high than Ensemble & Hostin since they hire the hosting space from VSNL.
There is a huge difference in the price for 100 MB Web Hosting Charged by Ensemble Consultants and Other Companies. It is because of the fact that other companies hire VSNL Web Hosting while Ensemble Consultant has a tie up with a US base server, Which offer cheaper services but of international standard. Ensemble s powerful web hosting plans offers a huge disk space and 99.9% server uptime.
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Graph 4 : Web Page(static) Designing Prices

Wed Page(Static) Designing 1600 1400
Price(Rs)
1500 1200 1000 800 600 500 500 600 900 900 750
1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0

Companies
Numeron systems Pyw ay w eb solutions Deccan Code Merven Technologies
Ensemble Consultant Mascot Solutions Sunmax systems pvt.ltd. GenX infotech
Genesis Designs Hostin Services pvt. Ltd. Deore Consultancy Services
Important Points : Numeron systems and Hostin services are the cheapest as far as static web page designing is concerned at Rs 500 per page. Hostin services pvt ltd has strengthen its position in this area by exploiting its brand image in the market and offering the service at a cheaper rate. Among other companies Deccan Code and Mascot solutions are charging just a bit higher than Hostin & Numeron ,designing a static web page at Rs 600 per page. Followed by Ensemble Consultants designing a static web page at Rs 800 per page & GenX infotech at Rs750. Factor contributing to the slight higher rate of Ensemble Consultants is that its development centre is situated at Pune IT Park, Aundh ,which adds to its fixed cost. Other reason being that Ensemble has recruited highly skilled web developer to maintain international standard (for foreign clients of ECSnap), so they have to be paid as per their skill set. The basic reason behind other companies designing the web page at a cheaper rate is that most of the companies outsource the web designing to the free lancers, who design the web page for them at a much cheaper rate.
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Graph 5 : Web Page(dynamic) Designing Prices
Web Page(Dynamic)Designing
2000
1750 1500
1500
1800
1500 1200 900 750 1200 800 850
Price(Rs)
1100
1000
500
Companies
Important Points : In the dynamic web page designing also Hostin is offering the best deal at Rs 750 per page. Following hostin is Deccan Code, designing the dynamic web page at Rs 800 per page and GenX at Rs 850 per page.
Deccan Code is posing a serious threat to Ensemble as it
has adopted
aggressive marketing strategy and following penetration pricing strategy.
Ensemble has to reconsider its price for dynamic web page since the competition from other companies is very stern.
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Graph 6 : Online selling Package

Online SellingPackage
35000 30000 25000 28000 25600 27300 26000 25500 20000 22000 30000
Price(Rs)
20000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0
Companies
Important Points : Online selling package consists of certain technical aspects. Now a days due to the inclusion of internet in everyone s day to day life, more and more companies are opting to sell their products online also. Since Ensemble is equipped with a team of well skilled developers it is having an edge over its competitors. Along with Hostin Services, Ensemble s price for the online selling package is Rs 20,000 which is lowest among all the players.
Hostin Services is the nearest competitor for Ensemble in this category also. Since Hostin is in this business for over 8 years, it has a established brand name. Hostin also has a good customer base in the market.
Other company that is doing well is Deccan Code, which is providing cost effective services. Its price for Onlice selling package is Rs 22,000.
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Most of the other companies quote higher price for the Online selling package. It may be for the reason that since the online selling package consists of certain complex technical features, and most of the free lancers do not posses the required skill set .
Mascot Solutions and Sunmax systems pvt. ltd do not provide the Online selling package.
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Graph 7 : E-mail Solution

E-mail Solutions
1500 1250 899 750 1550 1200 1000 1500 1200 1500
1800 1600 1400 1200
1100
Price(Rs)
1000 800 600 400 200 0
Companies
Important Points :
E-mail solution is the most commonly used service by the organizations and businesses now a days. Again hostin services is providing the E-mail solution service at the lowest price of Rs 750. Hostin prices are least for almost all the services it provides mainly because it has large business volume compares to other companies and therefore can afford to offer low prices in the long run.
Ensemble Consultant is offering this service at Rs 899. Ensemble s price for e-mail solution is higher than Hostin since it s business volume is not as large as Hostin has.
As compared to Ensemble and Hostin other companies charges for providing e-mail solution is much higher.
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Graph 8 : MyCart Software

MyCart Software
900 750 600 450 400 550 650 850 700
1000 900 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0
Price(Rs)/month
Companies
Important Points : MyCart software is a cheaper substitute for Online selling package and it is focused on the needs of small businesses. Apparently Hostin is offering it at the lowest price of Rs 400 per month. With not much difference compared to Hostin service Ensemble is offering the same service at Rs 450 per month. Deccan Code is also providing the MyCart software at the competitive price of Rs 550 per month and can be clearly seen as the nearest competitor to Ensemble consultants. Pyway web solutions & Deore consultancy services are also performing reasonably well as far as MyCart software is concerned. Pyway web
solution in particular is doing good business in this particular service. Mascot solutions and Sunmax systems pvt. ltd do not provide the MyCart software service. Numeron systems and GenX infotech are offering the MyCart software service at a relatively high price.
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Graph 9 : Web Maintenance

Web Maintenance
12000 10000 8000 9000 7500 5500 6000 6500 7500 6500 11000 8500 9000
price/year
6000 4000 2000 0
Companies
Important Points : Web maintenance is generally required for a large scale web site consisting of numerous links, database maintenance and regular updation s . Ensemble is offering the web maintenance sevice at the cheapest rate of Rs 5,500 per year. Pyway Web Solution is providing the Web maintenance service at a very competitive price of Rs 6,000 per year therefore competing closely with Ensemble Consultants. Along with MyCart software, Pyway web solution is doing a fairly good business in Web maintenance service as well. Hostin services and Deore Consultancy both are performing reasonably well as far as this particular service is concerned. Both offering the web maintenance service at a price of Rs 6,500 per year.
Rest of the companies along with Deccan Code are quoting high rate for the web maintenance service. Sunmax systems pvt. ltd do not provide web maintenance.
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Graph 10 : Content Development

Content Development
600 500 500 400 350 300 250 200 200 100 0 150
Price(Rs)/page
400 300
400 350
Companies
Important Points : A web site is generally assessed by the quality of its content. A professional web site in particular should have rich, interesting and relevant content. Hostin Services is again offering the cheapest deal with Rs 150 per page. Hostin is followed by Ensemble Consultants developing the content at a price of Rs 200 per page. Ensemble have excellent copy-writers on staff to write and edit a professional website. Pyway web solution is developing the content at a fairly competitive price of Rs 250 per page followed by Deccan Code offering at Rs 300 per page. Both Pyway web solution and Deccan Code has professional copy-writers. Deore Consultancy & Numeron systems has also developed reasonably good contents but they are not cost effective for a large scale website development. Genesis Designs and Sunmax systems pvt. ltd. do not provide content development service.
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Table showing comparative study of the services provided by different Companies
DN
WH
WD
DWD
OSP
EmS
MyCS
WM
CD
SEO
CS
SS
Hostin Services pvt. Ltd. Ensemble Consultant Genesis Designs Mascot Solutions Pyway web solutions Numeron systems Sunmax systems pvt.ltd. Deccan Code Deore Consultancy Services GenX infotech Merven Technologies
Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y
Y Y
Y Y
Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y
Y Y Y
Y Y
Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
Y Y
Y Y
DN WH WD DWD OSP EmS MyCS WM CD SEO CS SS
Domain Name Web Hosting Webpage Designing Dyanamic Webpage Designing Online Selling Package Email Solutions MyCart Software Web Maintenance Content Development Search Engine Optimization Customer Support Site Statistics
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DATA ANALYSIS
Identifying business Potential

Graph 1 : No.of respondents having their own web site.
size of business large medium small Total yes 18 10 4 32 no 12 30 26 68 total 30 40 30 100
No. of respondents having their web site
32%
yes no
68%
No. of respondents having their web site
100% 80%
Responce %
12 30 26 18
no yes
60% 40% 20% 0% large
10 medium
Business category
4 small
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Important Points : The total sample size of hundred business unit is divided into three categories as large scale (30), medium scale (40) & small scale (30) based on the size of the business and its location along with certain hypothetical assumption. Out of the total sample size 32% respondents were having their own web site while 68% business units were not having their web site indicating that a substantial share of market is still not having their web site. Therfore
showing a considerable potential market for web development and related services. In case of large scale industries 40% business units were not having their websites. Therefore this segment indicates some scope of potentiality . Where as the percentage of respondents not having their web site in case of medium scale and small scale business was 75% and 86% respectively. So it is implicitly clear that the medium scale and small scale businesses offers huge potential to do the business as far as this particular segment is concerned.
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Graph 2 : Out of the respondents not having their website, the number of respondents want their own web site.
size of business large medium small Total
yes 5 22 17 44
no 7 8 9 24
total 12 30 26 68
No. of respondents wants their own web sites
35%
yes no
65%
No. of respondents want their own web site. 100%

Responce %
80% 7 60% 40% 20% 0% large 5
no
22
yes
17
medium
Business Category
small
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Important Points : Out of the respondents not having their web site, the number of respondents planning to have their own web site in near future was 65% as against 35% who were not interested to have a web site. Therefore it solidifies the conception that there is significant demand for web development and e-commerce services. In the large scale business industry around 41% respondent wanted a web site to serve their businesses better while others were reluctant to have a web site. So there is demand for web sites in this segment but not as prominent as it is in the medium & small scale businesses. In the medium scale segment, 73% business units are planning to have a web site in near future against 23% , who don t want a web site. Thus this segment seems to be the most attention-grabbing as far as potential business is concerned. Small scale business units are also a lucrative potential market as 65% of the respondents require a web site to boost their trade.
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Graph 3 :
Out of the respondents having their website, the number of respondents satisfied with their web site.
yes 16 6 3 25
no 2 4 1 7
total 18 10 4 32
No. of respondents satisfied with their web site
22%
yes no
78%
No. of reapondents satisfied with their web site 100%

Responce %
2 4
80% 60% 40% 20% 0% large 16
1
no yes
medium
Business Category
small
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Important Points : Out of the total respondents having their web site, the percentage of respondents satisfied with their existing web site were 78% while rests of the 22% were not satisfied. As most of the respondents are satisfied with their web site, the percentage of the business units requiring a fresh new web site is less. Hence once a organization develops a web site its chances of switching to a new web site are limited. In the large scale business segment only 11% of the respondents were not satisfied with their web site while rest of the 89% of the respondents were satisfied thus this segment offers very limited chance of opting for a new web site. The satisfaction proportion in the medium scale & small scale segment is 60% and 75% respectively. So there is some possibility of conversion to a new web site in the medium scale segment while it is a bit limited in the small scale businesses.
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Graph 4 :
Out of the respondents having their web site, the number of respondents want changes in their web site.
yes 7 4 1 12
no 11 6 3 20
total 18 10 4 32
No. of respondents want changes in their websites
38%
yes no
62%
No. of respondents want changes in their web site
100%
Responce %
80% 60% 40% 20% 0%
11
no yes
7 large
4 medium
1 small
Business Category
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Important Points : Out of the respondents having their web site, the percentage of the respondents those who want changes in their web site is 38% where as 62% respondents don t want any changes. Various business units continuously updates their website, that why they need changes in the web site. Since there are various e-commerce and internet related services which can be offered to the other existing websites such as e-mail solutions, web maintenance, SEO, Online selling etc therefore these 38% of the respondent who are interested in making changes in their web site could be the potential customers. In the large scale segment 38% of the respondent want changes in their web site and thus offers some scope for the after web development services. In the medium & small scale business units the proportion of respondents want changes in their web site are 40% and 25% respectively, therefore business potential for the e-commerce and after web development services in these segments is little restricted.
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S WOT An aly s is o f En s e m ble
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SWOT Analysis of Ensemble Consultants
Few vital points and aspects are already covered in the Competitors Analysis and under the article Important Points . But to put the things further into precise manner, I would like to club these things together under this article .
But.. this, as I said is a precise picture and may not include all the aspects of the Web Development business in a extensive manner.
S (Strength ) :
Web site developed by Ensemble Consultants are of International standard and high quality since one of it s business unit, ECSnap deals with foreign clients. Development Centre situated in Pune IT Park, Aundh in which only those organizations are allowed to operate who has successfully done their business for 2 years. Apart from that Pune IT Park offers world class infrastructure helpful in developing high quality products and services. Since Ensemble has adopted penetration pricing strategy therefore its services and products are very cost effective and economical so that medium and small scale businesses could afford it easily. Price of various services and products offered by Ensemble Consultants is comparatively cheaper than most of the competitors. Ensemble Consultants provides comprehensive range of web Development and internet solution services to its customers. Tie up with a US base server which boosts Ensemble s Quality and helps in cutting down the price. Ensemble Consultants is a 100% EOU ( Export Oriented Unit ). Ensemble has a very strong command over the technical features and complexities involved in developing internet solutions and a full fledged professional e-commerce Web site .
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Ensemble Consultants is equipped with a team of excellent & well skilled developers, copy-writers and graphic designers who are technically sound and having a highly qualified skill set. ECSnap, one of the business unit of Ensemble Consultants primarily deals with foreign clients, which boost the revenue generation and also helps in maintaining international standards. Most of the clients of Ensemble are satisfied with the quality of the work and services they have received from Ensemble.
W (Weakness) :
No unique recognition of brand ( as in case of Hostin Services ). Ensemble has not diversified (atleast into related business like networking or internet softwares). Ensemble Consultants has started its venture in Web Development business recently. It has been over 2 year since Ensemble had stepped into the Ecommerce and Web development market. Therefore Ensemble does not have a large business volume so that it can capitalize over it and thus unable to reduce prices of some of the services. Ensemble do not focus more on its advertising and promotional activities. Its budget for advertising and promotion is limited. Ensemble has only two franchisees; Network and Shree Swami Samarth Consultancy Services.
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O (Opportunities) :
As more and more businesses and organizations will know the importance of a well designed, interactive and professional website and e-commerce services , the potential market size for Ensemble will increase. If Ensemble expands its network of franchisees it may boost its sales as well as revenue substantially. Since Ensemble provides cost effective e-comm. Services blended with better quality more and more businesses may open the doors of more sales for Ensemble. With better advertising campaign and extensive promotional activities
Ensemble can create a Brand recognition in the highly competitive market, which may result in better sales. Since Ensemble has adopted penetration pricing strategy and provides cost effective web development and e-commerce services so even small scale businesses may also opt for having their own web site. As more and more molls, business centers and new markets are opening, Ensemble can push the sales if a bit of more efforts are taken.
T (Threats) :
There are various small and big companies competing with Ensemble Consultants in different pockets of the markets. Among these players , the real threat at present comes from Hostin services pvt. ltd. which provides the comprehensive range of services at a cheaper rate compared to Ensemble Consultants. It is a established brand in the market and has a large business volume. In the coming years, a more serious competition may be posed by Deccan Code and Pyway web solution. Deccan Code also offers the complete range of web site and e-comm. Services and its prices are more or less same as of Ensemble . Pyway web solution is doing reasonably good business in some of the website related services and is operating in this business from quite a some time.
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A certain degree of threat also comes from those companies which are hiring the free-lancers for developing their products and services. Since these free-lancers do the job at a low cost, it helps the companies to reduce the price of the services in the market. Ensemble has to concentrate on their advertising and promotional activities otherwise the competitors will eat up the potential market.
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Fin din gs an d Co n c lu s io n
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FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION
The facts and figures itself talk about the competition structure, potential market and prevailing scenario & trends in the web development and internet services in Pune. Ensemble Consultants has started making its mark in the Web development market despite of the fact that it has been in this market since two years only. Hostin Services pvt. Ltd is the main competitor and the biggest threat for Ensemble Consultants. Hostin s domination in the market is due to various reasons. First and foremost is that Hostin is offering the best deal for most of the services. It s prices are very competitive. Hostin is offering a complete range of services. Hostin services pvt. Ltd is a recognized Brand. Hostin is having a very strong franchisee network. The nearest rival of Ensemble is Deccan Code and it may pose serious competition in the coming years. Deccan Code is also offering a wide range of Web development and E-commerce services and its prices are more or less same as Ensemble. There is a huge difference in the price for 100 MB Web Hosting Charged by Ensemble Consultants and Other Companies. It is because of the fact that other companies hire VSNL Web Hosting while Ensemble Consultant has a tie up with a US base server, Which offer cheaper services but of international standard. Ensemble is offering the domain name at economic price because one of its business unit, ECSnap is operating in united states. And due to its tie up with a US base server, Ensemble acquires the domain name authorization at lower rates Ensemble has adopted penetration pricing strategy. Prices of various services and products offered by Ensemble is comparatively cheaper than most of the competitors. Ensemble Consultants provides a complete range of Web development and Internet solution services.
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Pyway Web Solution is doing a reasonably good business in spite of relatively higher price than Ensemble because Pyway is constantly doing promotional activities and trying to reach as many potential customer as possible. Deore Consultancy has maintained a decent price level (slightly higher than Ensemble) and it is in this business for around 5-6 years. It has developed a distinctive customer base for itself. But Deore Consultancy do not provide complete range of products. A certain degree of threat also comes from those companies which are hiring the free-lancers for developing their products and services. Since these free-lancers do the job at a low cost, it helps the companies to reduce the price of the services in the market. Since 68% of the business units do not have their web site, it indicates a considerable potential market for web development and related services. The medium scale and small scale business segment offers a huge potential for the Web development & e-commerce industry. With the growing popularity of internet and increasing awareness about e-
commerce, there is a significant demand for e-commerce services like Online selling, MyCart software, Payment Gateway etc. Half the world's population now has access to the Web. Nearly 90% of them find websites through Search Engines that drive more than half of online purchases. And hence there is a great demand for Search Engine Optimization service. The basic reason behind other companies designing the web page at a cheaper rate is that most of the companies outsource the web designing to the free lancers, who design the web page for them at a much cheaper rate. Various competitors such as Sunmax Systems pvt. Ltd, Mascot Solutions and Genesis designs do not have all the services in their basket.
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Lim it at io n s
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LIMITATIONS
i.
AREA LIMITATION: The study was limited to Pune city only. Hence findings may differ from other parts of India where I have not visited.
ii.
NON-RESPONSE ERROR: It is almost impossible to obtain data from each & every respondent covered in sample. There are always some respondents who refuse to give information.
iii.
UNAVAILIBILITY OF OFFICIAL DATA : Due to Companies norms & regulations some of the official & financial data couldn t be made available.
iv.
LIMITED SOURCE OF DATA COLLECTION: Sources of data for collection of secondary data were limited.
v.
TIME CONSTRAINT: There was time constraint to this project. The project has to be completed within 2 months.
vi.
BUSY RESPONDENT: Many times respondents were so busy that they didn t give reply. There were biased replies also.
vii.
OTHER REASONS: There were heavy rains during the period of survey. So there was many times problem in conducting survey & transportation.
77
Re c o m m e n dat io n s
78
RECOMMENDATIONS
Ensemble Consultants should make efforts for its Brand building. A established brand is very useful for a company in the long run and helps to face competition. Price of Web page designing, both static and dynamic should be reduced since it is the core product. Reduced price will also assist in competing with other player. Enemble Consultants should increase the number of franchisees to expand the business. The franchisees should be located uniformly all over the Pune region in order to tap and exploit the potential market. The company should stress and concentrate over its advertising and promotional activities. Most of the competitors are doing well despite of charging more money than Ensemble as they have adopted aggressive and concrete advertising campaign. It should focus on the medium and small scale business segment as it is offering a huge potential market. Ensemble should diversify into related businesses like networking, internet software and utilities etc, since it has sufficient infrastructure and skilled technicians. Ensemble should continue with its penetration pricing strategy since due to it company has started setting its foot in the market. Feedback should be taken from the present clients to know whether they are satisfied and if they have problem regarding the services. This will certainly help to improve the overall performance of the company. Ensemble should improve its Search Engine Optimization service as it is in good demand and will be having tremendous demand in the future. Ensemble Consultants should identify new advance technology coming into web development business and should it introduce into the design system. The company should participate in the various trade shows related to IT, organized by various associations & try to educate and create awareness among the customers.
79
The developers and graphic designers should be trained if any new technological breakthrough is introduced in the market. Ensemble Consultant should Further expand its service range in order to have an edge over the competitors.
80
Biblio graph y
81
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Research Methodology, Methods and techniques C R Kothari
Marketing Management Philip Kotler
EnsembleConsultants Manual
Ensemble Consultants Brochure & Leaflets
www.ensembleconsultants.com
www.ecbuzz.com
www.ecsnap.com
www.indiamart.com
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Competitor&#39;s Analysis &amp; Identifying Business Potential

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A PROJECT REPORT

COMPETITOR S ANALYSIS AND IDENTIFYING BUSINESS POTENTIAL

MASTER IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION UNIVERSITY OF PUNE

SAURABH PARMAR M.B.A.

GUIDED BY Prof. SMITA SOVANI

VISHWAKARMA INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT, PUNE

TO WHOM SO EVER IT MAY CONCERN

IDENTIFYING BUSINESS POTENTIAL

DR. SHARAD L. JOSHI SOVANI (DIRECTOR)

Findings & Conclusion Limitation Recommendation Bibliography .. .

Exe c u t ive S u m m ary

The objectives behind carrying out this project are as follows : -

To identify the major player in the web development industry.

To study the prevailing trends in highly competitive pune market.

To make SWOT Analysis of Ensemble Consultants.

BUSINESS AND WEBSITES

Co m pan y Pro file

A Brief Overview of Our Business Units

Office Adress: ECSnap.com 212 E Tomaras Avenue, Savoy, IL 61874, USA

Vis io n , Mis s io n & Valu e s

WebSite Design Services

Choosing the right creative elements

colors, fonts, and images allows you to

Template-based stores. Custom designed stores.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Methods Of Data Collection

Dat a An aly s is an d In t e rpre t at io n

Graph 1 : Domain Name ( .com, .net, .co.in, .org )

1400 1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0

Ensemble Consultant Mascot Solutions Sunmax systems pvt.ltd. GenX infotech

Numeron systems Pyw ay w eb solutions Deccan Code Merven Technologies

Genesis Designs Hostin Services pvt. Ltd. Deore Consultancy Services

Graph 2 : Domain Name ( .in )

1500 1000 500 0

Graph 3 : Web Hosting Space

8000 7000 Price(Rs)/year 6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0

100MB Hosting Space

Price of Hostin services pvt. Ltd. is slightly higher.

Graph 4 : Web Page(static) Designing Prices

1200 1000 800 600 400 200 0

Ensemble Consultant Mascot Solutions Sunmax systems pvt.ltd. GenX infotech

Genesis Designs Hostin Services pvt. Ltd. Deore Consultancy Services

Graph 5 : Web Page(dynamic) Designing Prices

1500 1200 900 750 1200 800 850

Deccan Code is posing a serious threat to Ensemble as it

aggressive marketing strategy and following penetration pricing strategy.

Graph 6 : Online selling Package

20000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0

Graph 7 : E-mail Solution

1800 1600 1400 1200

1000 800 600 400 200 0

Graph 8 : MyCart Software

Graph 9 : Web Maintenance

6000 4000 2000 0

Graph 10 : Content Development

Table showing comparative study of the services provided by different Companies

DN WH WD DWD OSP EmS MyCS WM CD SEO CS SS

Identifying business Potential

No. of respondents having their web site

No. of respondents having their web site

60% 40% 20% 0% large

size of business large medium small Total

No. of respondents wants their own web sites

Competitor's Analysis & Identifying Business Potential

Competitor's Analysis & Identifying Business Potential